Canucks DeBrusk Ready To Bring Recent Road Goal Scoring Success To Rogers Arena

The Vancouver Canucks have had an odd start to the season. While most teams thrive at home, the opposite is the case for Vancouver, as they have gone 10-2-1 on the road compared to 3-5-3 at Rogers Arena. This trend is not exclusive to the Canucks as a team, but also its players like Jake DeBrusk, who has scored 11 times this season with all of his goals coming on the road. 

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Coming into the season, DeBrusk had scored 74 goals at home compared to 64 on the road. Flash forward to today, and while his home goal total hasn't changed, he now has more career away goals with 75. When asked about his home vs. road scoring, DeBrusk was surprised that the numbers were so close, given the success he has had at home throughout his career.

"That's kind of crazy, how tight that is," said DeBrusk. "Usually, I've actually been a home player. Obviously, I have gotten 11 now on the road so that caught up, so I must have been 11 ahead at home, or 10, I guess. But yeah, I couldn't tell you why. Sometimes, this game works out in funny ways. We were gone for almost two weeks there so it's one of those things where I am looking forward to getting the first one here. It will happen, and hopefully it happens soon."

The majority of DeBrusk's goal-scoring this season came on Vancouver's most recent road trip. Over the six games, he scored eight goals, which included the game-winner against his former team, the Boston Bruins. As DeBrusk explains, while it's hard to rank career goals, scoring in his return to TD Garden is one that he will remember for a long time.

"It was an emotional trip. There's lots of guys on teams that we were playing against, that I played with before too that left this year as well. I felt like I was seeing a lot of guys, and it was pretty busy. But in saying that, in terms of ranking that goal, you know, it's regular season goal. To me, it means means more. I'd probably say it's got to be in the top 10. It's kind of hard to compare with playoffs. Every playoff goal is more meaningful. Personally, for me, it was a nice one to get for sure, and the fact that was all we needed in that game was huge."

The six-game road trip was not just a success for DeBrusk but also for the team in general. Despite missing some key players from their lineup, the Canucks returned home with a 4-1-1 record while outscoring their opponents 21-18. As DeBrusk explains, these early season road trips are important as they allow teams to bond and players to develop some chemistry with their new linemates.

"I think it helps any team, especially early on the year. There's a lot of new guys here. The road trips help kind of bring the guys together. You go to dinners. There's lots of guys doing different things, and you get to meet everybody and see everybody's day to day. I think that always helps a new group. Obviously, there's lots of guys I've played with before, but different roles, different things happen, and had some injuries and some different things going on, so I think that helps the team out a lot. It's the same thing as a home stand, but on the road. You're a little more together, and I think it's always a good thing. That's why I liked training camp in Penticton: because you get away, and everyone's kind of together, so you get to meet guys and just build relationships. In saying that, we are excited to be home. Whatever the outside noise is, we we're counting down the minutes to getting home on the plane. We're excited to hear the crowd and just try to give them momentum from this road trip."

Related: Canucks Jake DeBrusk Discusses Building Chemistry With His New Teammates & His Ever-Evolving Hockey Stick

When players are struggling to score, one common solution is to change up either a routine or piece of equipment to get out of the rut. This seems to have worked for DeBrusk, who revealed that he changed his stick while also reducing the flex prior to the road trip. One thing DeBrusk doesn't want to be changed, however, is the team goal song "Don't You (Forget About Me)," which he hopes to have Canucks fans singing as early as Friday night.

"I want to hear that song! I want to hear that song with me this time. That's one of the things that when I first signed here in Van, I actually remembered it was the goal song. I think the goal song is great. I think that anytime it's not generic, it's always cool. I might be in the minority or majority on that, but I want to hear it from me."

Based on his recent play, it is a good bet that DeBrusk will be able to even up his home vs road career goal splits very soon. While he has been a streaky player in the past, DeBrusk has found success in December, scoring 25 goals and adding 44 points in 68 career games. Ultimately, if DeBrusk can keep up this goal-scoring streak over the six-game home stand, it will not only break his slump at Rogers Arena but go a long way in helping Vancouver even out its home record this season.